CENVAT credit on GTA service tax cannot be denied solely because payment was made through TR-6 challans.

CENVAT credit on service tax paid for Goods Transport Agency services could not be denied merely because payment was made through TR-6 challans during the relevant period. The credit rules then in force did not prescribe a specific document for availing such credit, and the admitted tax payment evidenced by the challans was sufficient proof. Rule 9 was treated as procedural and could not override an otherwise admissible credit claim, so denial of credit was unsustainable.

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Issues: Whether CENVAT credit of service tax paid on Goods Transport Agency services could be denied merely because the tax was paid through TR-6 challans during the relevant period.

Analysis: The dispute concerned credit of service tax paid on GTA services for a period when the relevant credit rules did not prescribe any specific document for availing such credit. The jurisdictional High Court had already held that where the tax payment was admitted and the challans evidenced such payment, TR-6 challans could not be discarded as invalid merely on a procedural objection. Rule 9 was treated as procedural, and it could not defeat an otherwise admissible credit claim.

Conclusion: The TR-6 challans were accepted as valid proof of service tax payment and the denial of CENVAT credit was not sustainable; the Revenue's appeal failed.

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